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Mayor corners big builder for encroaching drain, stops work

Construction work at Purva Skydale, a residential complex by Puravankara Projects Ltd adjacent to Haralur Lake, off Sarjapur Road, was on Tuesday morning stalled by BBMP mayor Manjunath Reddy, who went on an inspection.

TNN | Aug 17, 2016, 06:32 IST

BENGALURU: Construction work at Purva Skydale, a residential complex by Puravankara Projects Ltd adjacent to Haralur Lake, off Sarjapur Road, was on Tuesday morning stalled by BBMP mayor Manjunath Reddy, who went on an inspection.Blue fibre sheets covering the massive apartment project were pulled down using a JCB belonging to the builder, and construction workers were asked to leave the site, located in Kudlu village of Anekal taluk, in Bengaluru Urban district.

Reddy and other BBMP officials studied the village map pertaining to the construction site. Reddy remarked, “Prima facie, it looks like the builders encroached the raja kaluve. The lake buffer zone has been violated, and it looks like they have illegally acquired a farmer's land for the project.“

A Puravankara statement said: “Puravankara clarifies that the project is being developed on 186 guntas, and has a clear marketable title. The property has been purchased through a valid sale deed and we have the BBMP khata for the entire extent of land in our name, with all taxes paid till date. We are the rightful owner of the property and have adhered to all bylaws and obtained all necessary NOCs and plan sanctions. Referring to the 7.5 guntas of land, the matter is sub-judice. We reiterate that we have not encroached on any private or public property (SWD).“ Purva Skydale is a 17-storey resi dential complex comprising 288 flats.

But the mayor said, “The builders have shifted the flow of a storm water drain here and moved it to a different location within the property . There is violation of the buffer zone of the lake as well. I have been getting complaints from the owner of this site as well. I don't understand how they got away , despite such large-scale encroachment.The local BBMP engineer for drains isn't present so I don't know the exact extent of encroachment. I smell the involvement of Palike officials as well.“

After repeatedly questioning the site engineers, the mayor decided to bring down the fibre sheets. He added, “I instructed construction workers to stop work and seized their machines for the time being. There is clear encroachment of the storm water drain, close to 15 feet. Clearance of encroachment will be taken up after engineers study the local map and verify documents.“

COVERED DRAIN IRKS MAYOR

Mayor Manjunath Reddy also visited a gated community, Sunny Brooks, on Sarjapur Road. He inspected the raja kaluve nearby and said, “The raja kaluve has been completely covered, and there are chances the water will backflow and cause flooding in neighbouring areas.Also, the drain has been raised in the tech park adjacent to the gated community by almost 2.5 feet. Water flow is very slow.“

Reddy instructed officials to desilt and clean the drain in the next two days. He added, “Bommanahalli and Mahadevapura are two areas which are highly prone to encroachment.SWDs should not be completely closed. I will look into the matter of closure of SWDs and initiate action.“

POTENTIAL BUYERS CAUTIONED

The mayor has asked for a detailed survey report of the area on priority basis, and instructed officials to put up a banner warning potential buyers against buying flats on the allegedly disputed land.“I want to warn people who might want to buy a flat here.Builders are fooling people who will spend their life savings buying a property here, adjacent to the lake,“ he said.BBMP officials measured the buffer zone of Haralur Lake and found the boundary of the project at least 36 feet inside the buffer zone.The mayor said the builder had encroached 7.5 guntas of land belonging to agriculturist Venkataswamy Reddy.The farmer and his family members, who were present at the site, claimed that 8,160 sqft of their property was acquired by the builders. “I have been fighting this case since 2011. I went to the civil court, BBMP and BDA, but nobody paid any attention. A multi-storeyed apartment complex is coming up on my property now. They got illegal documents and I lost my land.

It was agricultural land that was converted into non-agricultural residential property. I went to the High Court, which redirected me to the lower courts.“

The resident of Kudlu village has been visiting the site almost every day, and watching the massive project coming up right before his eyes.

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